


Looking Up

by the_og_straya



Series: The Peter Parker Files [6]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Because it’s me, Everyone Loves Peter Parker, Field Trip, Flash Gets Proven Wrong, Fluff, Ned Leeds is a Good Friend, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker is a Sweetheart, Protective Bucky Barnes, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:22:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29042331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_og_straya/pseuds/the_og_straya
Summary: Peter goes on a field trip to Stark Industries!
Relationships: Bruce Banner/Thor, Michelle Jones & Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones & Peter Parker, Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Avengers Team, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Wanda Maximoff & Peter Parker, Wanda Maximoff/Vision
Series: The Peter Parker Files [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1925104
Comments: 19
Kudos: 332





	Looking Up

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve had this in my drafts for SO long and it’s been finished and for some reason I never posted it?? So here it is, my token field trip fic. Enjoy! ❤️

“Peter.”

A crumpled-up piece of paper hit his neck.

“Peeeteeer.”

Another piece of paper.

Peter slowly lifted his head from his desk and gave his worst glare to Ned. Curse the traitor for not even acting scared. That was a _Natasha_ glare. It was plenty scary.

“Peter,” Ned said insistently. “Did you hear?” He nodded his head toward the front of the room.

Peter narrowed his eyes at his best friend (and questioned _why_ he was his best friend). “Why else do you think I would wish I was dead?”

Ned just snorted, clearly unconcerned with Peter’s mental health. “Come on, man, how can you not be excited? It’s Stark Tower! With Tony Stark! And Pepper Potts! And... and everyone!”

“Exactly,” Peter hissed. “Everyone. My entire adopted family. They’re going to humiliate the life out of me.”

“Oh,” Ned said, then shrugged. “Can I have your lab when you die?”

That, perversely, did make Peter feel better. He cracked a smile. “Sure.”

“Alright, class,” Mr. Harrington was saying, even though only two students were even pretending to pay attention. “Remember to grab your permission slip and get it signed, or else you won’t be able to attend.”

That got their attention. As the bell rang, the collective hive-mind of the students rushed the teacher’s desk, grabbing a small slip of paper and stuffing it into whatever crevice of their backpack was available.

Peter sighed when Ned grabbed two slips and handed him one with a grin. _This is our best friend,_ he reminded himself. _We do not hate our best friend._

He wanted to anyways.

Dad would laugh before signing the slip. Mom would give him a knowing look and brush fingers through his hair, but ultimately would sign the slip and tell Dad about it, too. May would laugh at him, sign the slip, _and_ tell Dad.

May was also the closest, so May signed. And did everything he knew she would.

The day came closer and closer, looming over him, until finally it had arrived. Just a normal Thursday. Except every student was at school only to get on a bus to Stark Tower.

Sometimes Peter wondered if Loki was playing a massive trick on Peter’s life. It was plausible, with the amount that seemed to go wrong in his life.

Was he maudlin? Possibly. Was it also completely called for? Indubitably. Was he going to die? Only on the inside. Hopefully.

“Alright, class,” Mr. Harrington called once they were there, and launched into the typical “don’t touch anything you’re not supposed to don’t mess with people don’t be rude don’t run listen to the guide” safety lecture he gave every time.

Peter tuned out and accidentally tuned in to Flash muttering. Or maybe it wasn’t muttering if it was loud enough for Peter to hear even without his heightened hearing. “Guess we’ll finally see who was right about Parker’s internship,” he crowed, like a self-righteous cock who had thought he’d sprung the sun into existence by yelling. Peter gave a half-hearted smile at his inner monologue.

Then everyone pushed forward after Mr. Harrington, and Flash shut up. Or maybe the general din of students was loud enough to cover the noise.

Once inside, Peter took a deep breath and relaxed at the feeling of home. Sure, it wasn’t his only home; he still lived with May some days. But there were other days it made more sense for him to stay at the Tower. The second time that happened, Dad (back before he’d started calling him Dad, or even Tony) had set aside an entire room for him to use, besides the entire lab he’d given him the first time.

A secret smile played on his lips as he remembered thinking Dad had been showing off, rather than trying to take care of him. Dad still wasn’t great at emotions, but he was leaps and bounds better now than he was then.

“Hello, everyone! You must be Midtown High. My name is Sari, they/them pronouns, and I’ll be your tour guide today!”

Peter perked up. He loved Sari. They were the coolest, with the dresses one day and the suits the next and the faded band tees and ripped jeans the next. Their hair was a different color every week. This week was a bright teal, and Peter loved it, though he missed the purple from last week.

He tuned back in as Sari was explaining the cards. “There’s a color and a number for each. The color is the rainbow, because Tony Stark said gay rights.” They waited for the smattering of laughter they knew would come, and the class didn’t disappoint. “The numbers are one through ten. The rainbow’s kinda backwards. Red is the highest level, and purple is the lowest. I’m a green two, for example. That’s a typical tour guide level, because there are areas guides don’t need to get into. My normal level is a yellow four, which is better, since I’m one of the scientists here as well. You all will have purple one, but since you’re with me, you’ll be able to go where I do.”

Betty raised her hand. “What does a typical purple one get assigned to?”

Sari hummed. “Mainly reporters and visiting CEOs of companies, I believe. FRIDAY runs the security for the most part, and won’t let anyone stray where they’re not allowed. Purple ones get escorted straight to the meeting room, then straight back down to the lobby.”

“Unless they’re with a higher level,” Betty nodded, understanding.

“Exactly! Purple one is the most common level for a throwaway badge, one that’ll be used once then deactivated. Speaking of which, they double as souvenirs, since you can’t use them to get back in once you’re out!” Sari grinned at them and spread their hands. “Ready to go?” They received a definite yes and chuckled. “Alright. This detector is uber-smart; it can tell what it’s looking at and determine whether it’s safe or not. Phones are okay as long as you remember absolutely _no_ secret-sharing. FRIDAY can link into your phone and see the messages you send and receive, so there’s no chance of smuggling information out of here.”

Sari clapped and stepped back towards the detector. “And that’s all there is to it! FRIDAY will call out your name and level as you pass through.” To demonstrate, they walked through.

“Sari Thosnay, regular level yellow four, temporary level green two.”

The class all ahhed over FRIDAY and quickly stepped through. “Eugene Thompson, level purple one. Betty Brant, level purple one. Liz Allen, level purple one.”

It was normal until the class got to the last three: Peter, Ned, and MJ.

MJ calmly stepped through, daring the class to say anything. “Michelle Jones, level orange eight.” Ned and Peter stepped through in quick succession. “Ned Leeds, level orange eight. Peter Parker, level red ten.”

The entire class gaped, and Sari just grinned at Peter, who shifted uncomfortably. “Alright, everyone, let’s get going,” Sari finally said. “We only have a limited amount of time today, so let’s not waste it!”

Everyone fell in line, Flash just in front of Peter, throwing a, “I’m not sure how you hacked FRIDAY, Parker, but I can’t wait to expose you,” behind him.

Peter just sighed, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. He didn’t want to argue today. He was going to be the bigger person and ignore Flash’s remarks.

“First up is the lower-level intern labs,” Sari said, leading them into an elevator with no buttons. “Fri, take us to floor seventeen, please.”

FRIDAY did as asked and deposited them on the correct floor. “So like I said, these are the lower-level labs. These guys work on anything they find interesting. If they find something significant, they take it to a higher-up, who decides what to do with it. The original inventor still gets full credit for the idea, but unfortunately, most people are only interested in the finished product, not the ideas behind it.”

“Why’s that a bad thing?” Flash asked.

“I’m glad you asked,” Sari grinned. “The inventors that come up with those ideas are often chock-full of ideas just like that. But if we only focus on the ones who developed it—the people with more money and more power—then the scientist who developed the idea never moves up in the world.”

“It’s why self-published articles are so important,” MJ added, nodding to Sari.

“Exactly!” They grinned at MJ big enough that their brown eyes were nothing more than lines. “Anyways, let’s go! This is mostly a bunch of nerds talking, but some of them might actually be creating something.” Their voice was unreasonably fond, and most of the class correctly guessed they worked here most of the time.

“Ray, my friend,” they said as they approached a table. “Please tell me you have a project to show my group today.”

“We’ve got just the one,” Ray grinned, leading them back.

Along the way, Peter got stopped. “Parker!” Issa called, and he looked over to see them waving wildly. He chuckled and looked to Sari, who nodded in their direction.

“What’s up, Issa?”

“I don’t know how to configure this correctly.” They pouted adorably, and Peter chuckled before taking a look at the holographic screen. He hummed after just a moment. “See that there?” He pointed at a small part. “That shouldn’t be 47, it should be 42, just like the answer to life. Oh, and you’ve got a random exclamation point there.” He frowned. “How’d you even _get_ an exclamation point there?”

“I don’t know,” Issa admitted, embarrassed. “But thank you so much, Peter, you’re a _lifesaver_. Seriously.”

Peter just chuckled as he made his way back to the group. “Man of the hour,” Sari praised, grinning. “You can’t help yourself, can you?”

Most of the class was off watching the scientists, so Peter felt comfortable enough to shrug and return the jest. “I seem to remember a certain person helping Issa just yesterday.”

“Yeah, because Issa’s a mess without coffee and everyone knows it.”

“Issa’s generally a mess. They had an exclamation point in their configuration.”

Sari’s face twisted, confused. “How in the hell did they do that?”

Peter shrugged. “No one knows. It’s just Issa.”

Sari chuckled and nodded. “Go explore with your friends, Peter, I know you’re not here as a student often. Today’s your day.”

“Yeah, but I like helping. I like my normal intern days.”

“I’m not saying we won’t need you immediately after your class leaves, because we definitely will. But right now is for you. Help later.”

Peter just chuckled as he obeyed and walked over to where Ned and MJ were talking with another intern. “Hey, Peter,” Toni grinned, then launched right back into her explanation.

The time passed quickly, and before they knew it, Sari was clapping their hands to get everyone’s attention. “Alright students, let’s keep going! I know this is all really interesting, but we’ve got one thing to do before lunch, to get you nice and hungry.” Sari locked eyes with Peter for a second and grinned. “So come on, I’m not telling you where we’re going. You’ll just have to wait and see. Everyone on the elevator!”

The students all piled in, buzzing amongst themselves about where they thought they’d be going. “Fri,” Sari said once they were in the elevator too, “84th floor, please.”

Peter nearly groaned. The only thing of interest on the 84th floor was the gym, and he knew someone had gotten at least two or three of the Avengers into the gym.

Peter was not looking forward to this.

The doors slid open and his worst fears were confirmed. He heard the harsh sound of Russian being spoken and a few soft laughs between the grunts of someone in pain. Bucky and Natasha were talking as Natasha sparred against Clint. Remarkably, Clint was the first to notice everyone, and he jumped back with a universal “time-out” signal. He quickly signed to Natasha. “Peter’s class is here.”

“So we’re stopping?” She asked, purposefully speaking clearly and facing him.

He shrugged. “Didn’t Tony suggest-”

“Oh, right,” she nodded, then turned back to Bucky, speaking Russian again. “ _Do you want to help?_ ”

Bucky shrugged and grinned “ _Da._ ” He frowned a bit at the archer. “ _Should he put his hearing aids in?_ ”

Natasha glanced at him and shrugged before turning back to Clint, signing fast enough that everyone else was lost. He pouted but ultimately climbed out of the ring and dug in his bag for his aids. “Hello, Midtown,” Natasha smiled. “Welcome to Stark Tower. You’re here today to learn a little bit about self defense. If you did not get that part of your slip signed, you can sit right over here.” She pointed to the bench Bucky was on. He stood and approached her, taking over her speech.

“If you did get it signed, then we’ll be going through a sample of our training regiment, altered so you’ll be able to do it, too.”

Betty raised her hand. “Why did you alter it?”

Clint grinned as he approached them and pointed to Bucky, then Natasha, then himself. “Enhanced, enhanced superspy, superspy.” Betty nodded.

Natasha took over again. “Let’s all get into three groups. Bucky will take one, Clint will take another, and I’ll take the third.”

MJ pushed her way to Natasha and Ned pushed his way to Clint. Peter grinned at them and made his way to Bucky, shrugging at them. “Hey, Peter,” Bucky grinned. “How’re you holding up so far?”

Peter shrugged. “So far so good. It’s interesting, and even Fl- uh, some of the students who didn’t believe me about my internship do now.”

Bucky sighed. “I don’t like that people aren’t believing you, Peter.”

“I know, but it’s fine. At least the teacher believes me. It could be worse.”

Bucky chuckled. “You’re such an optimist.” He glanced around and saw that everyone was in a group near each superhero, so he addressed his group as Natasha and Clint did the same to theirs.

“Alright. Today we’re gonna work on defensive maneuvers. If someone comes at you, this is what you do.” He pulled Peter forward to demonstrate and muttered to him, “Position 12.”

He went slow, explaining exactly what they needed to do, and telling them if they did it correctly, they’d be able to flip him. He nodded at Peter, who nodded back, and they showed the sped-up version, ending with Bucky on his stomach and Peter holding his wrist up high. “Once you’ve got your opponent down,” Bucky said, lifting his head from the mat, “you’re at a prime spot to kick them. If they’re attacking you, they’re not playing fair, so you don’t need to play fair. Go for the side, the neck, or the face.” Peter toed each spot as Bucky named them off. Bucky tapped out and Peter let him go. He stood and brushed himself off. “Once you’ve got them down, if kicking them is the way to get them to stay down, then so be it. Then you run. As far and as fast as you can. Preferably to a well-populated area. Now, who wants to try?”

He grinned at Peter as Flash stepped forward, chest out. “I guess I will.”

Peter wanted to pull Flash back because of the look Bucky gave him. He _knew_. Peter swallowed around the lump in his throat and stepped back, letting Flash have the floor. He mouthed to Bucky, “No maiming,” and Bucky rolled his eyes, but gave him a nearly imperceptible nod.

“Alright,” Bucky said. “What’s your name?”

“Flash Thompson, sir,” he said proudly, offering a hand to shake.

“Flash,” Bucky drawled. “Think you understand how to do it?”

“Definitely.”

“Good. Let’s go then.”

Bucky swung his arm Flash’s way at maybe a fourth of his normal speed. Flash copied Peter’s movements but forgot to move his feet, so instead of flipping Bucky, he pulled himself off balance.

Bucky smirked at Peter before helping Flash up and explaining what he’d done wrong.

The next time around he did better, if a little shaky.

The rest of the group cycled through after Flash, taking care not to make his same mistake.

Abe stumbled once and Cindy pulled too hard, pulling herself off balance before she pulled Bucky off balance. Sally did surprisingly well.

And with that they were done. Sari got them all in a group again, thanked the Avengers, and led them all to the dining hall, an entire floor lined with different kinds of food. They had everything from a McDonalds to an Asian fusion place, and Peter loved it there.

Sari stopped them as they explained how it worked. “We don’t like waste here. So as long as your tray is empty of food, you won’t be charged for it. You don’t have to eat it, but as long as someone does, there’s no waste. You can take as much or as little as you want, so I’d suggest taking less than you think you’ll want, since you can always go back. You’ve got half an hour to eat.” They spread their arms, and the students rushed off to the different stalls. MJ made a beeline for the Asian fusion place, Ned chose Thai, and Peter chose Chick-fil-A, getting extra fries because he knew his friends.

Almost before he sat down, a hand snatched a fry from his tray. He grinned. “You’re lucky I got extra for you.”

“Just for me?” An accented voice asked. “I’m flattered.”

Peter’s grin grew as he turned to look at his friend. “Wanda!”

“Peter!” She copied, giggling when he hugged her.

“I didn’t know you were gonna be back today! I thought you and Mom were still in France?”

“ _Non,_ ” Wanda teased. “We got back about an hour ago. I’m going to eat then immediately sleep.”

“Jet lag?”

“Among other things. We crossed multiple time zones.”

“Oh, right. Think I’ll see Mom today?”

Wanda shrugged. “I think she would like to see you, but she is also tired. You could go up to your floor and see her.”

Peter grimaced and shook his head, motioning toward the rest of the hall. “I can’t, I’m here on a field trip with my class.”

She giggled again. “Only you, Peter, only you. What is it you call it, the Parker Luck?”

“Yeah, it’s working against me this time,” he chuckled. “You know Ned. This is MJ, our other friend. MJ, this is Wanda.”

“Hello!” Wanda said happily.

“Hi. Scarlet Witch, right?”

“Yes.”

MJ nodded. “Cool.”

Wanda giggled. “Thanks.” She stood and brushed a kiss over Peter’s temple. “I’m going to head upstairs. I’m glad I got to see you.”

“You too, Wanda.” He smiled warmly and caught her hand to squeeze lightly before letting go.

MJ had an unreadable expression on her face as she looked between the two superpowered teens. “So, you and Wanda?”

Peter made a face. “No. We’re like siblings. She’s super cool and I love her, but she’s my sister.”

MJ hummed and nodded. “Cool.”

“So cool,” Ned added. “Peter, how is this your life? Superheroes are your family members.”

Peter chuckled. “I went on a field trip to Oscorp and got bit by a radioactive spider.”

“Oh,” Ned said. “Right. I think I’ll pass.”

Peter chuckled. “Good idea.”

“Alright, everyone,” Sari eventually called. “Trays in the trash, lets go! There’s a lot to do and not a lot of time.”

“Where are we going next, Miss?” Flash asked, and Peter winced on Sari’s behalf.

“Mx,” they corrected, eyes flashing, a small smile on their face.

“Oh... uh... okay. Where are we going next?” He asked impatiently.

“More labs.” They shared a secret smile with Peter, who felt dread fill him. They didn’t mean _his_ lab-?

“Sari?” He asked timidly. “What level are we going to, exactly?”

“As if _you’d_ know, Parker,” Flash muttered, just loud enough for Peter to hear.

Sari just grinned at him. “Ninety-three.”

It was all Peter could do not to groan. Admittedly it was better than his lab; marginally. Floor 93 housed his and Tony’s joint lab, where they did most work for the Avengers. “Does, uh...” he swallowed the _Dad_ that wanted to come out. “Does he know? Is it cleaned up?”

Sari just grinned and shrugged. “I guess we’ll find out.”

Peter narrowed his eyes at them. “You’re the worst.”

“Mr. Parker,” Mr. Harrison admonished, and Peter ducked his head.

“No, please, it’s alright,” Sari assured the teacher. “This is normal for us.”

“Sari,” Peter mumbled. He absolutely did _not_ whine, no matter how much MJ chuckled at him.

Before Mr. Harrison could respond, Sari clapped to get everyone’s attention. “Alright, everyone on the elevator!” Once they were all on, Sari grinned at Peter again. “Fri, floor 93, please.”

“I’m afraid you do not have the clearance to access that level, Mx.”

“Oh, no,” they said, fake-upset. “If only there was someone here with a higher level than I...”

Peter sighed and crossed his arms. “He purposely didn’t give you access so you’d have to ask me.”

They laughed. “Actually, I forgot to ask for access.”

Peter chuckled. “Fri, 93, please.”

The elevator doors closed and they shot upwards. “ _He_ as in Tony Stark?” Ned whispered, and Peter nodded, smiling at his best friend.

“He decides who gets what access, and he can change who gets what access for how long. Usually tour guides would gain access to any floors they need for the specific tour.”

“There are different kinds of tours?” Sally asked.

“Definitely,” Sari nodded. “We’re on a pretty typical school tour, but there are also business and scientific tours.”

Sally nodded. MJ looked thoughtful. “Do the tour guides learn each tour?”

“Some do,” Sari shrugged. “I prefer the school tours, so I tend to stay on them. But I know someone who knows all three and tends to lead all three pretty equally.”

Just then the elevator doors opened. Sari moved to the front to guide them through the lab, then stopped short and sighed. “Not what we expected to see when we walked in here,” they said, arms crossed.

Everyone peeked around Sari to look at what had stopped her.

Bucky was sitting in the middle of the lab with his left arm, crushed beyond belief, on the table at his side.

Peter yelped and rushed forward. “What did you _do_? That was vibranium! It’s supposed to be nearly indestructible!”

“Oops?” Bucky grinned, completely unrepentant.

“This is gonna take _forever_ to fix. Can you move it at all? What did you even do?”

Bucky shrugged. “Clint dared me, what else was I supposed to do?”

Peter scoffed and muttered underneath his breath, “And you call Uncle Steve reckless.”

“I do because he is. This was a one-off.”

“I don’t care what it was, it happened and now I’ve gotta fix it.”

“I called Tony. I guess your class was already on the way up here.”

“Yeah,” Peter mumbled absently, already opening up a panel on the arm.

“Hey, kiddo,” Tony said, walking in from the other elevator. “Wanna tell me what you’re doing here, and not with your class?”

“My class _is_ here,” he muttered. “He completely destroyed his arm. Look at this!” He motioned to it frantically.

Tony chuckled and laid a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Calm down, _figliolo_. First things first, Skywalker, does it hurt?”

“Again, his right hand, and no. I don’t even need it fixed right away, I just thought it’d be easy if one of you wasn’t busy.”

“There, see?” Tony palmed Peter’s shoulder to face him. “He doesn’t need it now and it’s not hurting him. Go back to your class, then once you’re done, you can come back up here and find us. I’ll wait for you, okay?”

“I guess,” Peter sighed.

“If I may, Mr. Stark?” Sari interrupted. “Peter’s seen everything else on the tour, and the only things left are this and the Q-and-A.”

“Well then,” Tony grinned. “Gather ‘round, class, and watch us work.”

“But,” Peter started, then switched to Italian. “ _They don’t know I call you Dad._ ”

Tony looked at him. “ _Do you not want them to know? Because if you don’t, then you can call me Mr. Stark, or even Tony._ ”

“ _I don’t want you to be in a position where you have to confirm or deny whatever rumors are bound to spread from it._ ”

Tony chuckled. “ _I see Pepper’s rubbing off on you. It’s fine, figliolo, I don’t care. If you’re okay with it, then I’m okay with it._ ”

“Okay,” Peter nodded, and they grinned at each other. “What first?”

“Have you had a chance to diagnose it yet?”

“No, I just got in here. Screwdriver?”

“ _Exactamente._ ”

With that, they fell into their routine, calling out numbers and figures and tools. Within an hour Bucky’s arm was almost like new, and Sari was getting their attention again. “There’s only half an hour left on the tour. If we want to do the last part, we have to leave now.”

Tony pulled his phone out of his pocket and hummed. “Alright. You’ll be okay with that?” He checked with Bucky, nodding to the arm.

He moved it around a bit before nodding. “It’s great. Thank you both.”

“Sure thing. On to the session?” Tony asked, inclining his head back towards the elevator.

Bucky smirked. “Do I really have a choice?”

“Nope!” Tony said happily. “C’mon, Buckaroo.”

They all headed to the floor where the rest of the Avengers had already gathered, and as soon as Tony and Bucky peeled off from the school group to join them, Peter’s classmates started murmuring among themselves.

“Tony Stark-”

“He knows _Parker_? How?”

“And Bucky Barnes-”

“What did that mean, a dare?”

MJ snorted at their classmates and turned to Peter. “Good luck ever staying under the radar at school again.”

Ned waved a hand at her. “You know they’re all gonna forget when the next scandal happens.” He turned to Peter. “You’ll be fine.”

Peter smiled tightly at his best friends. “Thanks, Ned. And thanks, I think, MJ.”

She just smirked at him before someone tapped on the mic and they all focused on the podium.

Tony stood up front, waiting for everyone to look his way, before he began. “Hello again, Midtown. As you can see, gathered here today are all the Avengers and our subsidiaries—our sidekicks, our adopted kids, and so on.”

MJ opened her mouth, and Peter kicked her ankle, shooting her a look. She chuckled at him.

“Now, without further ado, question time! One at a time, please, raise your hand and wait for us to call on you.”

Hands shot up all across the room, and Tony picked Cindy. “What are the colors on the badges for?”

Tony’s face fell as he looked to Sari. “This is a group of Gen-Zers, and you didn’t tell them?”

Sari smirked. “I did. You never said I couldn’t phrase it as a joke.”

Tony narrowed his eyes at them. “Remind me why I keep you around.” He turned back to Cindy. “It’s rainbow on purpose because I deal with a lot of conservative old white men and I like to give them the metaphorical middle finger.”

Abe raised his hand insistently, and Tony pointed at him. “So you support the LGBT community?”

“Support?” Tony smirked and turned to the Avengers, looking at each one before turning back to Abe. “Maybe we should introduce ourselves. Hi, I’m Tony Stark, and I’m pansexual.”

“Natasha Romanoff, bisexual.”

“Clint Barton, aromantic.” He threw the kids a salute.

“Steve Rogers, bisexual.”

“Bucky Barnes, gay, and for some reason in love with this big lug.” He nudged Steve, who grinned and nudged him back.

“Bruce Banner, trans.”

“Thor Odinson.” He paused. “I do not believe your world has the correct wording. I believe in love, all love, and I believe you are who you say you are, not what you look like. I have had many partners of varying sexualities, and Loki is sometimes my brother, and sometimes my sister.”

“Wanda Maximoff.” She grinned at them. “I’m the black sheep, I’m straight.”

“Sam Wilson, bisexual.”

“Vision. I don’t have a last name. Nonbinary, he/them pronouns.”

Everyone gaped at the Avengers as they fell silent, and Tony grinned. “So you see, the rainbow coloring actually does make a lot of sense.”

Flash raised his hand, and Peter winced in advance, thinking what his question could be. “So you let known murderers join the team?”

Tony’s eyes hardened. “Kid, there isn’t a soul on this team who hasn’t killed, and there isn’t a soul on this team who doesn’t regret it. Yes, we killed. Some of us didn’t have a choice; some of us did. Either way, we all regret doing what we had to, and we fight today to make sure we don’t have to do that ever again.”

Sally hesitantly raised her hand and Tony nodded at her. “So obviously Captain Rogers and Sergeant Barnes are together, but are there any more couples on the team?”

Thor grinned and slung an arm around Bruce’s shoulders. “I am very happy with my partner Bruce.”

“Vision and I are together as well,” Wanda cut in.

“I’m assuming you all know Pepper and I are together,” Tony added. “And Rhodey, you know, War Machine? We’re qpp’s, queer platonic partners.” He narrowed his eyes at the students. “I feel like I should’ve expected this, getting the gayest generation in a room full of gays, but do you have any questions that aren’t related to who we’re with or how we identify?”

MJ raised her hand, and Tony nodded at her. “Where’s Spider-Man?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know, weather boy?” Bucky murmured, and Peter almost choked.

Tony sent an amused glance his way. “If he knows what’s good for him, he’s in school.”

Flash raised his hand again, and Peter barely bit back a groan. “What age do you start hiring interns?”

Tony hummed. “There have only been a few exceptions, but typically SI doesn’t hire until you’re in college.”

Flash grinned triumphantly and turned to Peter. Before he could say anything, MJ cut in. “Oh my god, Flash. Another word and you’re off the team. Did you miss the entire thing earlier where Tony and Peter worked on Bucky’s arm together? Did you honestly miss how fluid they are? Is your head really that far up your own ass?” She crossed her arms and stared him down, and he gaped at her.

“MJ’s right, actually,” Tony said, stepping down from the podium. “Peter’s one of the smartest, bravest, kindest people I’ve ever met. SI might not hire until college, but I’m not SI. I hire based on ability, regardless of age, and Peter’s got ability in spades. Peter is my personal intern, and I don’t appreciate you spreading lies about him.” He crossed his arms and frowned at Flash, and Peter was impressed; he’d really gotten the I’m-disappointed-in-you dad-look down.

Flash looked down, deciding not to answer, and Tony nodded, stepping back onto the dais. “Any more questions?”

MJ raised her hand again. “What do you do to ensure everyone is treated and paid fairly?”

Tony beamed at her. “Great question! We’ve got a really great competitive program here. Everyone starts out being paid the same as their coworkers in that field. As they progress and show the ability to take on more, we give them raises. And as far as discrimination goes, we use a blind resumé, meaning all we see is their skills. We don’t know their name, sexual orientation, or gender. By the time they come in for an interview, we’ve pretty much already decided if we’re going to hire them or not. The interview is really just a chance for us to gauge their personality and see where they’d fit best.”

MJ nodded. “And what if they come in with no experience whatsoever?”

“That’s where an internship comes in. They meet with our senior staff, essentially the manager of each field, and discuss their possibilities. Interns are usually only here for about a year or so as interns. Once they find their niche, we help them submit an application. Oh!” He suddenly exclaimed, hitting his forehead with his palm and turning to Sari. “Happy Rosh Hashanah. I’m sorry I forgot.”

They grinned at him. “That’s alright, thank you.”

MJ glanced between the two of them, then nodded, satisfied. She gave Peter an impressed look, to which he nodded with a smile.

Tony looked around. “Anyone else?”

Abe hesitantly raised his. “You totally don’t have to answer, I get if this is a sensitive subject for you, but, uh, your... your playboy days. Those were real?”

Tony smiled kindly. “I don’t mind. The short answer is no; the long answer is those people I supposedly slept with would’ve gone home with someone else that night. Someone who would’ve given them money in order to use their body. I offered them a warm bed, a good nights’ rest, and a week’s pay, on the condition that if they wanted out of that lifestyle, they’d work for it using that free week I gave them.”

MJ looked at Peter, something lurking in the back of her eyes. “Looks like I owe you an apology. Maybe Stark’s not as bad as everyone thinks.”

“He’s really not,” Peter murmured back. “But thank you. I know how much it means, coming from you.”

She winked and turned back to the front, paying attention again, where Steve was going off—yet again—about the differences between the two time periods. Bucky was staring at him with a small smile on his face, and Peter honestly didn’t know how people thought they were straight.

MJ raised her hand again, looking straight at Natasha, after Steve had finished. “Hey, Nat. What’s it like being one of the only women on the team? Not only that, but the first woman?”

Natasha grinned at her. “Hey, MJ. It’s pretty fun, they’re all terrified of me.” She shrugged. “In all honesty though, they’ve done a great job including me and not treating me as less. It helps that they grew up around other powerful women figures. Tony has Pepper, Steve and Bucky had Agent Carter, and Clint had everyone in the circus. Thor had Lady Sif.” She turned to him. “How is she, anyways? Bring her to visit again soon.” She turned back to MJ. “And Bruce generally just has known that women are not to be trifled with. It wasn’t all that difficult, really, finding my own space. And now that Wanda’s here, I’m very protective of her.” She exchanged a smile with the younger woman. “It definitely could’ve been worse.”

MJ nodded, satisfied, and sat back. Tony checked the time. “Alright. We’ve got time for a few more questions, or everyone could spread out and we could talk. So... raise your hand if you want to keep doing the stilted, we’re-on-a-stage-and-you’re-not questions.” Nobody raised their hand, and Tony smirked. “Thought so. Alright, we’ll be around the room. Come talk to us if you want.” He shrugged, knowing full well the students would beeline to their favorites, only mildly surprised when Peter and Ned were the only ones who chose him.

“Hi, Dad,” Peter smiled, leaning into him for a second. Tony wrapped an arm around his shoulders and chuckled. “What, you mean spending half an hour working on Bucky’s arm wasn’t enough quality time for you?”

Peter grinned. “Never.”

Tony chuckled and smiled at Ned. “Hey, Ned.”

“Hi, Mr. Stark,” he said politely.

Peter poked Tony’s side. “Can he and MJ stay over after?”

“If it’s okay with their parents,” Tony shrugged. “But you’re telling Steve to make more for dinner.”

“What’s he making?”

“Empanadas.”

“Ooh, Ned and I will help!”

“I love empanadas,” Ned agreed.

Tony chuckled. “Sounds good, then.”

The boys grinned and scrambled off to tell Steve. “Hey,” Peter said, grinning.

Steve chuckled. “Hi.”

“He and MJ are staying.”

“We’re gonna help with the empanadas,” Ned added, and Peter nodded.

Steve chuckled. “That’s kind of you, but you don’t have to. I can do it myself.” He leaned in conspiratorially. “Besides, I’ve already got Bucky to help me.”

“Okay, but if we help, then we can eat twice as fast.”

Steve chuckled. “If you want to then, I guess.” He turned to face Sally with a smile as she walked up to him.

Not ten minutes later, Tony stood and clapped. “Alright, that’s time! We hope you all had a great time today, but it’s time to go home.” He caught Peter’s eye and motioned over to his teacher. Peter sighed but ultimately knew what his dad wanted and walked over to Mr. Harrington. “Is it okay if MJ, Ned and I stay? We all have permission.”

“I’ll need to see the permission, or confirm it with the guardians, but I don’t see an issue with it.” He gave Peter a small smile. “And let’s hope Flash will leave you alone now.”

Peter gaped at him. “You- you _knew_?”

“Not in as many words,” his teacher admitted. “I could see there was something between the two of you, but you always act like it’s fine, and he never does anything in sight of me. And if I don’t see it happen, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“I get it,” Peter nodded, then smiled. “Still, I appreciate it.”

Mr. Harrington returned the smile. “I’ll see you three on Monday.” With that, he turned to the rest of the class, and clapped. “Alright, everyone, back downstairs and onto the bus!”

Peter caught MJ’s eye and nodded. She smiled and nudged Ned, whispering in his ear. He lit up and looked at Peter, who nodded with a grin.

They moved over to him, and MJ smirked. “So I’d say that wasn’t a total loss.”

Peter sighed but couldn’t help the grin. “No, it was okay. I can’t say I’m looking forward to Monday, cause I’m sure Flash will have thought of ten more reasons to pick on me by then, but it’s okay as long as he doesn’t pick on anyone else.”

“That’s not actually healthy, but okay,” MJ shrugged. “As long as you don’t mind if I threaten him.”

Peter sighed. “I can’t stop you, can I?”

She shrugged again, and he nodded. “So Uncle Steve’s making empanadas, who wants to help?” He grinned as both his friends agreed and rushed out of the room with them, just barely beating MJ to the elevator. The day hadn’t been a total flop after all, and the way it was headed now, Peter would say it was looking pretty great.

**Author's Note:**

> I had a few more ideas as I was writing, but I figured this was long enough, so there may be some other kind of field trip fic coming soon. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! I’m on Pinterest @enbyestrella and I’m always down to yell about our favorites. ❤️
> 
> Edit: thanks to xgre98 for correcting my Italian! I’m not ashamed to admit that all my knowledge came from either the forbidden Google Translate or other fics, so I didn’t know the word I mean when I used bambino was figliolo. Thank you!! ❤️


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